My family does Pollyannas, and it turns out I have to buy a gift for my Mom. Don't worry, she won't read this. She browses the internet like I go to church... maybe twice a year.

Past gifts to Mom:
A tennis bracelet (most expensive one by far)...
A smoothy maker

I forget everything else. I like forgetting what I gave someone, so that if desperation arises, I can just give them the same gift again and plead ignorance (innocent ignorance). I'm kidding. I just don't remember that stuff.

Anyway, it's a $40 limit this year, which means I'll try to stay closer to it. It sucks having Mom as Pollyanna, because, in being your Mom generally means that she gets the best presents from everyone. Yet, the Pollyanna thing limits it, and yet still, you feel you are let off the hook of getting something elaborate by only spending the limit. However, you can't just spend the limit on your Mom. It's impossible. The limit, then, becomes a lot higher. But, I might get my Mom a tennis bracelet, and one of my brothers gets my Dad an 18 pack of golf balls and something else little. Surely, Dad needs them (actually, he's been better at finding misstruck golf balls ever since one of my brothers got him that machete for Christmas that one year), and bundled with another golf gift, like a glove or something, it's a great gift package. I wouldn't mind getting something like that (hint...). However, it shouldn't be compared to a tennis bracelet, because it's not only a Pollyanna gift. It was a moderately cheap one, though :)

But, the nice thing about that gift was that whenever someone sees that bracelet on my Mom, and compliments her on it, I hear about it, even years later! It's the gift that keeps on giving, and also to her!

I've been known to go all out on Christmas. I just like getting something for everyone, but it's hard now that I have like 7 new people in my family since 1998. It's part finance, and part ideas!! If I get one idea a year, I feel I've reached my quota, and can relax the rest of that year. Fourteen ideas is somewhat insurmountable. So, since the beginning of my working days when I was 16 (~1995) until the first of my brothers getting married (~1998), I've had money for exactly 3 great ideas for gifts in my immediate family. Not even half. Not cutting it. Without an idea, they could usually find a CD or a movie under the tree from me.

I need ideas for this year. Anything. Try to stay under $40 though, since you wouldn't want me to have to sell this website to some other Jason T. Connell, now, would you? The target market is maybe 2 other people, so it would be tough, but I'll do it!